Research Development Core: Susan Brooks, Director The goal of the RDC is to support an environment that promotes biological aging research by UM faculty scientists, through a combination of research retreats and pilot grant awards. The RDC will also begin, in July 2010, a program involving direct support of research programs of newly recruited junior faculty members, as suggested in the Nathan Shock Center RFA. Promoting collaboration between biogerontologists and experts in cognate fields is an important part of the RDC, and our research retreats are organized explicitly to attract the interest of local and visiting scholars who might not themselves be established in aging research. Pilot grants are targeted at scientists in the early stages of their faculty careers, but occasional awards may be made to mid-career researchers with a new interest in aging research.